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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: hide · roll · pit · lean · rest · cell · bear · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. rest — what's left
  3. field — farmland
  4. roll — a cake
  5. field — a subject
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — in biology
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cell — a phone
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. bear — the animal
  12. pit — a hole
  13. rest — a break
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. lean — thin
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. pit — in a race
  19. rest — what's left
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. lean — to bend
  23. bear — the animal
  24. roll — a list

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com